Hmmm that's sort of dependent on the game and the actual distance , and it may well be a tossup between one of the few off the shelf rifles I own , that being a Sako TRG 42 in .300 win mag that is the single best out of the box rifle I've ever owned bar none or a heavily modified Brown built Model 70 that's currently wearing a 27 inch bartlein in 7mm rem mag that I've had for eons , those two for out to a for real thousand , with a Savage build in
.257 w'thby mag a tick off from them. I'm building a double port Savage in .338 Lapua that should be equal to them.

None of those are as precise down the range a bit say 250 to 600 as an *old* Pope built Mauser conversion to .22-250 AI , I've a Mauser converted for .257 Roberts that's a tick behind that , a couple of Savage builds in .243 and .22-250 that are right in there and a pre garcia Sako in .243 that's along with the roberts are my magical Antelope talismans.

Bolt guns don't stay around here long unless they'll consistently go a minute of angle or under , the only exceptions to that are the Nagants for toss behind the seat truck guns and the opensighted .375 rum I keep ( along with a Marlin '95 Guide Gun in .45-70) for far north bear defense , that's set up with ghost rings and still works just dandy out to 150 - 200 even with my old eyes.

So ultimate accuracy , that;s a loaded question , those first two will keep five rounds in a ten inch circle at a thousand from a rest fairly easily , but the smaller cartridges will outgroup them by a half in at a 100 extrapolate that out to 600 or so where the carrying ability of the larger slug carries over. It comes down to a horses for courses type thing.

Same thing but even more so with handguns.

Overall the easiest to build and get the best accuracy out of most economically in a Varmint type setting is the Savages nowadays , I've become a big fan of them.

And decent glass is key , especially as one ages , there's a lot of decent glass around economically but *really* good glass is expensive , sometimes VERY expensive.

Dad's passion was building precision rifles. I grew up shooting bench rest, the only kid competing with men/women here at the local club back in the early 70's.

I guess the biggest loss, including the bench rest rifles, was the Brno Mauser based one he built for my grandfather's retirement. Mannlicher stocked, it was a thing of beauty. Wasn't the most accurate of the lot, but had great sentimental value.

With you on the glass (and aging). Weeping now just thinking of some that are no longer here.

No longer -

Model 700's in .270, 30-06 and a Varmint SF in .308.
Numerous Mauser 98 action based rifles (one in .45-70 Govt, had a bullet drop like a rainbow).
Model 03/A3s, one in .257 Roberts, another in .243
The bench rest rifles in .222 and 6x45. Macmillan action/Schillen barreled if I remember correctly for both. Another incomplete based on a Model 788 (due to the nine locking lugs of the bolt).

Others that were wildcat rounds and somebody buying them at a pawn shop would have had a hard time finding ammunition (-;

I still have a falling block action and butt plate. It wasn't built and as such is still here. Greener? if I remember correctly.

Thanks for the thread. Making me want to get out there and dig into the gunsmith tools/parts still kept in good condition.

Used to do a lot of varmint hunting with my dog, although I had a lot of success with .22 semi-auto, I always loved using the .30-30 or .35 lever action rifles. I preferred to kill the fucking things with one shot, vs. watch them suffer from the tiny .22 slugs, requiring more rounds..that, of course, saved some ammo.

Any other varminters? Or am I the only certifiable RedMist Lunatic in these environs?

I hunt ground squirrels every spring into the early summer before they estivate. My two boys love to go with me. They prefer I use my .223 because of the dramatic special effects. I usually use my 10/22, though, the ammo is a lot cheaper.

I shot a bitch coyote who was yapping at my neighboors dogs in July this year. She was trying to lure them out to the rest of the pack, but the dogs were in a kennel.

All I can say is that a 160 gr. Partition bullet from a 7x57 Mauser is a bit of overkill for coyotes!

Falling for Judo since 1980

"You are wrong. Why? Because you move like a pregnant yak and talk like a spazzing 'I train UFC' noob." -DCS

"The best part of getting you worked up is your backpack full of irony and lies." -It Is Fake

"Banning BKR is like kicking a Quokka. It's foolishness of the first order." - Raycetpfl

Back before I realized there were no rifle ranges in my area, I thought about getting a rifle for target fun and extremely short range varminting on my property (no more than 300 yards, 100 preferred). I had a thing for 6.5x55mm Swedish Mauser (planning to handload 85gr Sierra Varminter bullets) before opening up to 7mm-08 (planning to handload 100gr Sierra Varminter bullets), but ultimately landed on .223 Remington (planning to handload 35gr Hornady NTX bullets). The primary target would have been groundhogs, if they ever showed up again:

The other bastards which would have met the rifle I was dreaming up, though an extremely unlikely target, were coyotes. Those are beyond the calibers mentioned in the spoiler, and there are presently no rifles more capable in the family.

Should my range situation change: is handloading light-for-caliber, rapidly expanding bullets at ≈2500fps muzzle velocity acceptable for the animals and distances I've described? I don't want to derail too much, and I figure a short comment or two might be somewhat on topic.

Should my range situation change: is handloading light-for-caliber, rapidly expanding bullets at ≈2500fps muzzle velocity acceptable for the animals and distances I've described? I don't want to derail too much, and I figure a short comment or two might be somewhat on topic.

If y'all want, I'll be glad to link the rifles I had in mind.

In .223? That depends on the rifle and whether it will cycle with that light of a loading if it's a semi auto , is there a reason you wish to back off so far on the velocity?

And yes you can source a whole slew of slugs all the way down to the 35 grain mark that will thump groundhogs and work effectively on coyotes , though if you want low to medium velocity loads that will still be effective on the designated game in an efficient manner you may wish to actually go with something like a 69 grain Lapua Scenar or the 69 grain Sierra offerings , both the Scenar and the MatchKing have worked quite well for me loaded to the 2700fps to 3k mark . These would be fairly decent all round loads , swap slugs for a HPBT if the match slugs bother you , trust me they're just fine on coyotes though.

Light slugs , the problem there is you're going to have to *push* them for them to be effective in the manner you describe , 28 grains of Varget behind most any 35 to 45 grain slug will see 3500 fps and above out of a 24 inch tube just to give a rough idea.

What rifles are they , I'll look in my logs and see if I have any data that is close to one of your rigs.The majority of it comes from bolt rifles though. Keep in mind that your twist rate is going to affect the weight of slugs that will be optimal in your specific rifle.